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Supreme Court Justices Stephen Breyer and Samuel Alito, shown arriving at the State of the Union address, are stoking the ire of Senate Dems who voted in favor of their confirmation.
John Shinkle

In interviews, several previously supportive Democrats expressed frustration with both men — particularly Roberts, who, many believed, would be more of a consensus builder on the court.

“I seldom am critical of the Supreme Court or individuals on the Supreme Court, I’m just disappointed at what has happened,” said North Dakota Sen. Byron Dorgan, who voted for Roberts.

New Mexico Sen. Jeff Bingaman, another supporter of Roberts, said he thought the chief justice would be “more of a mainstream justice” and has been “disappointed on how conservative and ideological his decisions have proven to be.”

Louisiana Sen. Mary Landrieu said that what she knows now “might have influenced me a little differently” on Roberts but said she made the “best decision I could” when she voted in 2005 to confirm him.

Conservatives regularly attack Democratic judges as “judicial activists,” but Judiciary Committee member Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) said, “It’s well past time” to call out conservative justices for their own brand of judicial activism. He said that making such arguments now could help the president if he has another chance to nominate a justice to the court.

But Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas), a former judge and current Judiciary Committee member, said Obama and the Democrats were being “hysterical” over the fact that the justices eliminated restrictions on the First Amendment. Other Republicans noted that Alito and Roberts never explicitly said they would follow every precedent, particularly because the court periodically overturns its earlier decisions.

“If you look at the First Amendment of the Constitution — [the ruling] was to restore it,” said Oklahoma Sen. Tom Coburn, another committee member.

In his speech Wednesday night, Obama said the Supreme Court’s decision “reversed a century of law to open the floodgates for special interests — including foreign corporations — to spend without limit in our elections.”

As Democrats rose to cheer, Alito shook his head and mouthed the words “not true.”

Feingold, who sits on the Judiciary Committee, said it was “inappropriate” and “not very judicial” of Alito to protest — and he criticized the justice for failing to “maintain his judicial demeanor.”

Sen. Ted Kaufman (D-Del.), another committee member, said in an interview that Alito was “totally classless.”

Republicans said Obama started the fight — and that he shouldn’t have used the State of the Union as an opportunity to go on the offensive against the justices sitting before him.

Asked about the imbroglio, Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.), ranking member of the Judiciary Committee, said sternly: “It was not proper for the president of the United States to misrepresent the Supreme Court decision before the American people. He’s supposedly a constitutional law professor — he ought to know better.”

Even though Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) disagreed with the court’s decision, he called Obama’s criticism of the justices “awkward and inappropriate.”

Readers' Comments (1762)

GEE This is too funny.. First It's Bush and Cheney .. Then Party of No.. Then Austrotufers.. Nazi and Teabaggers.. and Now the same idiots are going against the Supreme Court....

Gee why don't they look in the mirror.. But again Career politican knows no better than Point fingers and complain.. Hey Dummies if you haven't notice umm .. The American People are tried of this crap.. and you think spout off that it this person .. or that person fault makes us seem to follow you...

My 7 year old has more common sense than most in either house..She knows not to place all blame on others.. Unlike most of these Career hacks .. she knows she is responsible for her actions...

Maybe she should give these Career politicans a lesson in ethics....No they would more than likely call her names.. That again is what Career politcans do best!

What disgusting group of people these Democrats are.Obama Ambushed the justices while the Dems surrounding them stood up and mocked them.Democrats use ACORN and UNIONS to do their recruitments and fundraising but cry foul because now the corporations they badmouth can now donate.Booohoo cry me a river.

It was classless for Obama to diss the Supreme Court for a decsion that it made. The Court was extending a courtesy to Obama coming to his speech. I'm sure that the Court members had better things to do than make the perfunctory appearance at Obama's speech only to be criticised.

But that is the arrogance of Obama and the clapping Democrats....only Obama and his party know what is right for America and what the Constitution means.

The Public, the people of Mass, and now the Supreme Court are just too dumb to understand what is right, according to Obama.

At some point, Obama has got to wonder "Are all of Them the problem, or is it just ME ?'.

If the Supreme Court always "respected precedent ", Dred Scott v. Sandford and Plessy v. Fergurson would still be "good" law. That means Obama would be cutting the grass at the White House instead of living there! What a completed display of ignorance! By the way, any read of Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission shows the ex-"Constitutional Law Professor" is a total idiot!

Apparently these Democrats have lost all sense of what the constitution is all about. Returning to the original meaning of the constitution instead of relying on some 1990's left-wing justice's "interpretation" of it is breaking precedent? Oh, come on. If that's what it is, then I think we need a whole lot more of this precedent-breaking.

These are exactly the people the tea partiers are working to get out of our government, and they're beginning to realize that we're going to succeed in doing it.

Besides the fact that Obama is totally wrong (someone should be fired over that), now Democrats want to control the Supreme Court too? "With all due respect to separation of powers"?? That's the LAST thing Democrats want. Obama is classless, classless, classless.

Corporations are not people. The Founding Fathers, fresh from breaking with England, were clearly not prepared to let giant corporations such as the British East India Company have free reign to appoint politicians favorable and sympathetic to their needs. In fact, corporations were not even legal for two decades after the Constitution was ratified. To imply this is a legitimate First Ammendent issue is ridiculous. There is no labor union or community organizing group that has he depth of funds compared to corporations such as Exxon, Aetna, Bayer or ADM. What the SC has done is to grant these corporations superhuman status. You and I can donate 2300.00 maximum to a candidate. Wellpoint and Halliburton are not bound by any kind of restriction now.

You can take the entire bonus amount paid out by Wall Stret in 2009 and give every Senator 600 million dollars with it. Just the bonuses alone, not profits.

The entire cost of the 2008 elections, statewide and national was 3 billion dollars. This is one month's profit for Exxon-Mobile. 1/12 of the their profits.

Corporations are the creation of laws. Corporation are not people. Money is not free speech because those with the most money now have more rights than the rest. Obama raised most of his donations from people giving 20 dollars or less. This SC took it on themselves to ensure that never happens ever again and that the rich and powerful will enjoy even greater access to buy candidates they favor. The voice oif the average person will be annihilated.

Ah shucks Dems,when in good God's name are you people going to get it? Americans are tired of all your "Liberal Socialist"crap! When Obama dissed the Supreme court justices,he dissed America. What an arrogant SOB he is,oh by the way,a "messiah"he isn't,this guy couldn't get a job as a dog catcher in the real world,that takes experience too,something this "boob" is short on.remember that in November when the earth begins to rock in the "house and senate" and Americans set the stage for taking back our country in 2012!

Durbin and the rest of congress lied when the ran for office, so I quess you can say they also misrepresented themselves to the voters. They are an embarrassment to the US for their behavior last night. Even my college age sons thought it was uncalled for.

If there's anything more disgusting than seeing this two-bit egomaniacal rabble rouser-rouser lecturing the Supreme Court as to what the law is on national TV, it's seeing these airheads in the Democratic party complain about it. Who do these people think they are? No, I know what they are. And the rest of the country is beginning to realize it. When the AP starts telling the truth about some of the lies in his State of the Union Address you know the end is near for these dictatorial socialists. They got control of all the levers of power in Washington and now the voters can see what these Democrats are all about when they have complete power.

If the president stands in front of America and the world and states a lie or stretches the truth should his statement have to go unquestioned just because of the arena he chooses to say it? Is it acceptable for the president to stand before America and tell a lie about someone or their actions right in front of them and expect that they will not defend themselves or disagree? Wasn't it Obama that said "I want you to get in their faces" when you hear them saying something you believe to be false? Didn't he form a "fast action" response committee for just such statements against him? Are they supposed to just sit there and suck it up like little children being scolded by their parent? The fact is that Obama did lie when Rep Wilson said he did, illegal aliens would have been allowed to access Obama care so isn't it just possible that he thought because the MSM allowed him to stretch the truth the first time he could get away with it again? The only problem I see here is Obama abusing his authority and making statements in an arena that people are not allowed to defend themselves and the MSM attacking the victim instead of the abuser.

ahh just payback for the so called conservative sanda dayo'connor (Az.) she help with the right to kill babies(called abortion on demand) and soon as she got in she went right to the left. So once again the anti - Constitutional democrats, feel their living document ( untrue), is in trouble. But what they are not telling you is they have been breaking this law since Bill Clinton in fact they have a friend that helped them get foreign money for their elections (he's in prison), but now the field is open, and with how the democrats are governing I would be scared too. Also learned the wording said two people was a corp. Besides the law forbidding foreign money was not even considered. Not only are the chickens coming home to roost they are running around like chickens with their heads cut off "Fowl fowl fowl. Screaming Bush did it, Bush did it . Will democrats cry racist against Alito next , they do that so well!

Durbin and the rest of congress lied when the ran for office, so I quess you can say they also misrepresented themselves to the voters. They are an embarrassment to the US for their behavior last night. Even my college age sons thought it was uncalled for.

Oh God forbid that we have Justices that actually defend our constitution! What was unprecedented, was a president publicly scolding an equal branch of our government during his State of the Union. The democrats are upset only because the ruling means they won't be able to cheat "as much" during the next presidential election. Where did all the unaccounted foreign money from Obama's election originate -- we'll never know. Yes, some was returned, but millions have not been accounted for.

The decision finally restored the free speech of ordinary Americans. Many of us cannot afford to fund ads supporting particular candidates for election, but through our donations, CAN band together to support them. The campaign finance laws didn't permit that before. So called special interests are likeminded people banding together. That's all they are.

The dirty little secret about laws like McCain-Feingold -- it caused an unfair balance in favor of incumbents. They made those laws to try to get job security. The way the get that is to listen to their constituents. It makes sense the Dems are upset about this, given their inclination to ignore us during the health care reform mess.

It's becoming increasingly apparent that this Bozo isn't really in charge of anything. He's nothing but a puppet for the collection of crooks, misfits, perverts, socialists and communists surrounding him who are pulling his strings. They keep him involved in playing golf, going on vacation, giving private interviews and throwing hoe-downs in the White House to keep him out of the way. In return all he has to do is give one or two speeches a day, reading the teleprompter in a firm voice, making eye contact with the cameras to keep the dummies who voted for him in line. Well, even the dummies are starting to realize what's going on and this house of cards is beginning to crumble.

But worse, they say, both Roberts and Alito misled them during their confirmation hearings when they represented themselves as jurists who would respect precedent.

Like Obama misled all of us during his campaign, making promises he hasn't kept or appearing to be a leader that would lead from the middle instead he turned into a far left liberal. None of these politicians have room to cry foul.